Secular alliance ditched NCP, talks to form 3rd front: Anwar

Patna: Blaming the grand secular alliance for “ditching” it in seat-sharing, the NCP today said it has almost shut door on the grouping of JD(U), RJD and Congress and is in talks with the Left and other parties to form a third front during the coming Bihar elections.

“The way they (secular alliance) ditched us while deciding seats it seems there is no room left for talks with it…It seems we are left with only one option – that is to form a third front with Left and other parties,” NCP General Secretary Tariq Anwar told PTI.

“The way they (secular alliance) treated us where is the question of going with them?” a peeved Anwar said.

Expressing anger against the secular alliance constituents for distributing seats among themselves and leaving only three for NCP, he said, there was no criteria for seat distribution and NCP was not consulted.

“The three distributed seats among themselves and left us on the road,” he added.

“Being a Lok Sabha MP I have a minimum claim over six assembly seats but they (secular alliance) gave us only three and that too without talking to me,” he said, adding, it appeared alliance parties were overconfident that Muslims in particular were with them and they did not need him.

“We came to know about distribution of 100 seats each for JD(U) and RJD, 40 to Congress leaving rest 3 for us in grand secular alliance from TV and newspapers…It is great humiliation for NCP in the hands of secular parties,” he added.

Anwar said he had detailed talks with Left parties for contesting Bihar elections together.

“The Left Front comprising CPI-ML, CPI, CPI-M, Forward Bloc and SUCI have promised to get back to NCP after August 30,” the NCP general secretary said.

NCP was also in talks with the party of former union minister Nagmani and some other groups, he said but categorically ruled out any tie-up with Janadhikar Party of expelled RJD MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav.

Janadhikar Party has shown inclination to have some sort of poll arrangement with BJP, hence there was no chance of fighting the poll with them, he said.

NCP had fought on one seat with the support of secular alliance in the recent poll to 24 seats of legislative council and its opting out of the grouping would not be encouraging news for the anti-NDA side.